There are several reasons why the Open University (Great Britain) should define the teaching objectives of their text editors and designers--and how they can best be achieved--including the wide range of student abilities and the allocation of resources. A model of the functions of textbook design and editing would help provide a basis for an editorial house-style more suited to the university's special problems. Such a model would consider three basic areas: the enabling function--the physical and psychological features of the volume itself; the aesthetic function--features such as illustrations, color, quality paper, and durable binding; and the access function--the organization or structure of the information that allows retrieval and helps form an effective reading strategy. The need for access structure is often ignored, but research evidence in the areas of learning styles, the way efficient readers read, and student workload favors the selective reading such a structure allows. Most of the university's texts are too long for students to read in the time allowed. The access structure provides a way for students to allocate their time efficiently. An access structure that truly reflects the content, structure, and purpose of the text would be the product of textbook editing and design based on the university's teaching objectives. (HTH)